The Banter Conclusion
by luminous77
Summary: This is my first published fan-fic. In this short story Leonard and Penny are friends who love to tease each other. But are they just friends, or is there more behind it? There's a proverb that says: Teasing is a sign of affection. Set in season 1. Rated M for some mature content in chapter 2.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Please note, that the characters are not necessarily IC.**

 **Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from The Big Bang Theory. I don't own any of the characters.**

For half a year now, Leonard and Sheldon, two physicists at Caltech and residents of apartment 4A at 2311 North Los Robles Avenue, Pasadena, California had a new neighbor. A pretty blonde waitress who worked at the Cheesecake Factory. She moved into apartment 4B right across the hall and her name was Penny. In a short space of time Leonard and Penny became friends, while Leonard's roommate Sheldon remained aloof in regard to Penny.

Leonard was on his way to meet his friends Howard and Raj. But he was late. So he hurried down the stairs into the lobby and nearly clashed with Penny, who was just on her way upstairs, after checking her mail.

"Hey!Look out!" Penny yelled at him. She picked up the envelopes and advertising brochures, which had fallen to the ground.

"You look out!," he replied in a fake annoyed tone.

Penny looked daggers at Leonard, but not for long as she quickly slapped on a bright smile. "Hi, Leonard. Did you miss me, sweetie?" she said confidently.

"Not at all. I'm not here for you," he assured her.

"What? Who could be more interesting than me?"

"Hmm. Every other person on this planet?" Leonard laughed.

Penny folded her arms in front of her and raised a brow. "I'm warning you, Hofstadter. Don't go too far."

Leonard looked at her with a smirk on his face. "Well, you started."

"Still, your answer could have been more charming." Penny pouted. "You know what? I give you the opportunity to correct yourself. So, did you miss me, Sweetie?" Penny asked him again.

"And how," he answered theatrically, reaching for his chest with a yearning grimace on his face.

"Now you are exaggerating."

"You're never satisfied, aren't you? You wanted it this way," Leonard said.

"You don't have to exaggerate."

Leonard sighed. "Penny, you floor me."

"Why are you still standing here?"

"Because you are blocking my way," Leonard said. "You are doing this with purpose."

"Of course," Penny said sarcastically. "I have nothing better to do."

"Exactly."

"Why don't you just pass me?"

Leonard chuckled. "That would take hours."

"Oh, really? Penny inclined her head and gave him a smile. "I'm well aware what you want to imply with your remark."

"Oh, okay. What would that be?"

"Well, you think I'm very attractive, but you hide it behind these sarcastic statements."

Leonard had to gulp. She had seen through him. "You're wrong," he said.

Penny turned around and shook her butt. "Ah, c'mon. Admit, that you incessantly stare at my butt and my cleavage. You can't help it."

Leonard had to laugh. "You're quite smug, aren't you?"

"But am I not right?" Penny said with a chuckle. "Why can men never admit something?"

"That's why!"

"Interesting."

Leonard liked to banter with Penny. It was fun. They were definitely more fun than his banter with Sheldon, which were just annoying most of the time. "Nice talking to you, but I have an appointment with Howard and Raj. And I'm so late. Bye Penny."

"Bye Leonard. Have fun."

* * *

It was two days later when Leonard came home from work and found Penny standing in front of the entrance of the apartment building, trying to stick a bill to the door. The night before Penny, who also was an aspiring actress, had made a poster advertising a presentation of the musical show 'Rent', in which she had landed the role of Mimi. She fixed it with tape to the right door wing and stepped back a little to examine it. But suddenly the poster broke loose from the door and fell to the ground. Penny wanted to pick it up, but a gust of wind blew it away. "Oh no! Shit!" she cursed.

With wide opened eyes she ran after the poster, when all at once abdominal pain hit her. To make things worse the pain spread into her back as well. Leonard came to meet her and reacted immediately. He managed to got hold of the poster and gleefully looked at Penny, who walked towards him holding her back like an old woman.  
 _I'll wipe that stupid smirk off your face_ , she thought.

"Why do you grin so stupidly?" Penny asked Leonard.

"You walk like an old woman," Leonard replied.

"Really?"

"Here's your poster." He held it out to Penny.

"Thank you very much," she said poutedly and took the poster.

"Are you on your period, or why are you so bitchy?"

Penny was snubbed. "That's none of your business."

"I'm just saying." Leonard raised his hands defensively. "Are you coming over for diner tomorrow?"

"Sorry, I can't."

"Why not?"

"That's why!"

"Do you have to prepare for your role in this musical show?"

"No, that's not the reason."

"What is the reason?"

Penny fixed the poster to the door again. "I'm not going to tell you," she said.

"Then I'm right with my assumption."

"What assumption?" she asked annoyed.

"Well, that you are on your period."

"Can you speak louder? Not everyone has to know about this." Penny shook her head."God, since when are you so outspoken like Sheldon?"

"There's nothing to it," Leonard said matter-of-factly. "You can talk about it openly."

"But I do not intend to talk openly with you about this. Not with you!"

"I beg your pardon." He raised his hands.

"Oww!" Penny got a cramp.

"What's wrong with you?" Leonard asked worriedly. Penny squirmed with pain and held her stomach. Leonard quickly pulled his phone out of his hoodie. "I call an ambulance. We need to get you to..."

"No, no!" Penny said soothingly. "It's okay! It's just abdominal pain, that sometimes comes with my period. It's nothing serious. It's just annoying."

"Why don't you take a pill against the pain?"

Penny suddenly became quite pale. "They do not help," she replied.

"But there are special pills for menstrual cramps."

"They do not help," she said indignantly.

"Okay, if you say that."

"Listen, I don't want to argue with you about my menstrual cramps, okay?"

"Okay! What about a hot-water bag?" Leonard suggested.

"I don't have time for this. I have to go to work in thirty minutes. I have the late shift today."

"Then call in sick."

"No, I can't do this. I need the money."

"But look at yourself. You can hardly stand upright."

"Yeah, yeah." Penny stopped him with a wave of her hand. "Do you have chocolate?"

"Chocolate?" Leonard asked incredulously.

"Yes," she yelled. Cold sweat formed on her forehead.

"You know, I'm lactose-intolerant."

"Right. Dammit!"

"Oh, wait. As chance would have it, I have a candy bar in my pocket, that Raj actually gave me for Sheldon." Leonard took a Butterfinger out of his left pocket, and before he knew what was happening Penny tore the bar from his hand."Hey, what the hell?"

Penny ripped the wrapping open, pushed the bar into her mouth in one piece and groaned while gobbling the bar with her eyes closed. Leonard watched her amused. Apparently she felt munchies for chocolate when she had her period. That was an intimate detail he knew about her now. It kind of made him happy. Of course, he wasn't happy that she was in pain, but now he knew why she was so irritated and cranky on some certain days. Because she had her period. "There's chocolate in the corner of your mouth," he noted. Penny appreciatively wiped the chocolate away with her tongue. "I could get you more chocolate!" Leonard said.

Penny hopefully looked at Leonard. "Really?"

"Of course. I prove it to you. Wait here!" Leonard went to the gas station across of the street. When he came back after a few minutes he jubilantly held up a Snickers.

Penny looked at him in surprise. _Is this really happening right now? He's so cute._ "I don't like these," Penny said bluntly.

"What?" Leonard looked at her bewildered.

"I only like Milky Way," she said with a pout.

"But you also had the Butterfinger."

"That was an exception," Penny told him.

"They have no Milky Way's at the gas station."

"Shit!" Penny bursted into tears and crouched down. She quickly covered her face with her hands, since she didn't want him to see her crying.

Leonard looked at her with concern and contemplated. "Go back to your apartment and wait there. I'll get Milky Way's for you."

"Yes?" Penny looked up at him pleadingly.

Suddenly Leonard had the urge to take her into his arms, to stroke her stomach, to comfort her. "Yes. I'll be right back." Leonard climbed in his car and drove to the nearest supermarket. He hurried to the confectionery and looked for Milky Way bars. He smiled when he spotted them and without much thinking he grabbed all bars that were on the shelf. He rushed to the checkstand, paid the chocolate and drove back to the apartment building. He ran up the stairs and into Penny's apartment without knocking. Penny sat on her turqouise sofa and held her aching stomach.

"Here," he said breathlessly, laid the Milky Way bars on the table in front of her and took out his inhaler to prevent an asthma attack.

Penny stared at the mountain of candy bars. "Wow! I can't believe it. You probably bought all Milky Way bars that were available."

"Yes, I was ruthless. But only because of you!"

Penny had to laugh. Leonard stared at her. Her laughter was so charming and so beautiful. Penny jumped up from the sofa and hugged Leonard impetuously. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You are the best." Leonard felt Penny's breasts as she pressed against him and he began to sweat in a strange way. Penny suddenly backed away. "Umm...hormones," she said shyly.

"Of course," Leonard said grinning which prompted Penny to blush heavily.

Their eyes met and they looked deeply into each other's eyes. It was the first time that this happened. Penny turned away in confusion and quickly grabbed one of the chocolate bars on the table. Leonard was silent. He wasn't able to move. Everything was spinning in his head. Suddenly he said, "Be careful, or a bee could fly into your sweet mouth."

"What?" Penny's eyes opened wide in astonishment.

"Umm...I mean, because of the chocolate. Umm...Chocolate attracts bees. Nevermind." he stammered. "Okay, I go now. You have to get ready for your late shift."

"Yes."

"Bye."

"Bye. And thank you for the chocolate."

"You're welcome."

"But it won't change anything," Penny told him.

Leonard grinned. "You still think I'm a dopey nerd."

Penny had a bright smile on her face. "Exactly. I can't stand you."

"Same here." He smirked and left Penny's apartment.

Penny closed the door and watched him through the peephole of her apartment door as he walked over to 4A. She startled, when Leonard suddenly stopped, turned around and looked in the direction of her apartment door. He couldn't see her, but she could see Leonard smiling. It was such an adorable smile combined with a dreamy expression on his face. It hit her through the peephole right into her heart. Penny quickly turned away and wondered why he smiled that way. Her abdominal pain was completely gone, but now she felt something else in her stomach. It felt like butterflies.

* * *

Again and again Penny had told Cheryl, her colleague at the Cheesecake Factory, that she wouldn't get involved with a new man. She would made a fool of herself, if she wouldn't stick to her word. For now Penny had enough of men and wanted to enjoy her single life instead. During their break at the late shift they sat down in the employees' lunch room.

"You're pretty mean to Leonard!" Cheryl said.

"He needs that, believe me!" Penny countered.

"And it seems you need that too. From the stories you tell me about him it looks like he's as mean as you."

Penny rolled with her eyes. "As if he knew what I need."

"Then you don't know what he needs as well."

"I don't want to know what he needs."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"You like him," Cheryl said with a mischievous grin.

Penny shook her head. "Not at all!"

"I see," Cheryl said, with narrowed eyes.

"If you say so." Penny shrugged.

Cheryl had to laugh. "He's cute, isn't he?"

"No idea! Haven't noticed that," Penny said and gave a bored yawn.

"You don't say! But he's different than your ex-boyfriend Kurt."

"Well, yes, he is..."

Cheryl raised a brow. "Yes?"

Penny began to feel uncomfortable. "I have no idea. He bugs me."

"Because he can counter your teasing."

Penny snorted scornfully. "He can't keep up with me."

"Of course not." Cheryl said sarcastically. "You like it, when he counters you. Admit it."

"Forget it!" Penny exclaimed. "I'm not interested in him. Not today and not in a hundred years. I'm fed up with men for now. He can go hang."

"Alrighty!" Cheryl chuckled, leaned back on her chair and took a sip of water.

"I stick to my decision." Penny said in a stern voice. "No men!"

"Hey, decisions can be changed."

Now Penny became angry. "Can we talk about something else?"

Cheryl sighed. "You're a quite complicated case. Is it possible that you are afraid of a new relationship because of your experience with those other guys?"

Penny finally gave in to Cheryl's persistence. "Fine. Yes, I'm afraid. I don't want to be heartbroken again. My heart was broken so many times. All my exes cheated on me. I have so many flaws and foibles, that after a while they couldn't stand me. And in the end only sex remained, and even that became boring so they all cheated on me. I'm a basket case." She uttered a sigh.

Cheryl dissented. "Don't say that. That's not true, and you know it. All your exes were idiots and more important, none of your exes didn't really love you. Believe me, someone who truly loves you, will love you the way you are. With all your flaws and foibles. This is true love. Unconditional love."

Penny looked at Cheryl. "It's hard for me to believe that. I'm just scared of being hurt again."

"I know." Cheryl laid a hand on Penny's arm. "Again. Do you like Leonard?"

"I guess so."

"Ah! Now we come to the point," Cheryl said grinning.

"I told you this in confidence. Don't you dare to tell anyone about this," Penny said sternly.

"I'll keep it for myself, I promise." Cheryl affirmed and gave her a warm smile. "Hey, I'm your friend."

Penny smiled back. "Thank you."

"Do you have feelings for him?"

Penny shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just confused."

Chery nodded sympathetically. "Yes, I noticed that. You are very inattentive at work."

 _Oh god, everyone is noticing it. I have to get my shit together_ , Penny thought.

* * *

While Penny had her late shift at the Cheesecake Factory, Leonard sat on his desk in 4A and looked over some physics related things on his computer. He was about to get something to drink, when his phone rang. He looked at the screen and saw it was his younger brother Michael.

"Hi, Michael."

"Hi, Leonard."

They talked a while about their work and some trivial stuff, when Michael brought up the inevitable. "What's love doing?"

Leonard groaned.

"What? It's just a simple question."

Leonard swayed uncomfortably in his chair. "I'm not interested at the moment," he stammered.

"In love?" Michael had to laugh.

"Exactly!"

"Come on! There must be someone."

"Okay, there might be someone," Leonard admitted.

"I knew it. What's her name?" Michael urged him to reveal some details. "C'mon, brother. Talk to me."

"Her name is Penny."

"What is she like?"

"Annoying!"

Michael had to laugh again. "Alrighty! What does she think about you?"

"Penny can't stand me."

"I suppose you can't stand her too."

"That's right!"

"Okay. It's as clear as day."

"What is as clear as day?"

"You love her and she loves you! You don't want to admit it to yourself, because you are afraid. And Penny doesn't want to admit it to herself too, because she is afraid as well! What do you think about my theory?"

"What is she afraid of?"

"What are you afraid of?"

After they ended the call, Leonard was deep in thought. Michael was right. What was he afraid of? Afraid of getting turned down by Penny? He had feelings for Penny. Strong feelings. Romantic feelings. Somehow he had to tell Penny how he felt for her. But how? He was afraid, indeed. Afraid of getting turned down, of getting hurt when Penny wouldn't reciprocate his feelings. Still deep in thought he finally went to bed.

 **To be continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Please note, that the characters are not necessarily IC.**

 **Thanks for the reviews for chapter 1. I really appreciate them.**

 **This story was originally intended to be an one shot, but I decided to split it into two chapters. Here's the second and last chapter. As mentioned in the description, some mature content is coming up to you. I hope you enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from The Big Bang Theory. I don't own any of the characters.**

Chapter 2:

Two weeks later, Penny was jogging in the park near the apartment building. After running for a while she sat down on a bench to take a break. It was a wonderful spring afternoon and Penny savored the sun. She closed her eyes and after a short while she nodded off.

 _Penny and Leonard embraced each other tenderly. Penny leaned her head against Leonard's chest. He held her tight and she enjoyed the physical closeness to him. Then Leonard began to plant soft and tender kiss on Penny's neck. These kisses created an indescribable magic feeling which sent pleasant shivers through her body. Penny let out a quiet moan. And he smelt so good, so masculine..._

"Hello?"

"What?" Penny woke with a start.

"Hi Penny!"

"Oh, Hi Leonard", Penny said, slighty confused and puzzled by this dream, which felt so amazingly real.

"What are you doing here?", Leonard asked with a smile on his face.

"I went jogging. Then I took a break and must have fallen asleep."

Leonard nodded. "It's a really wonderful day, isn't it?"

Penny agreed. "Yes! Absolutely!"

"I would have treated you to a cold drink, but unfortunately I'm in a hurry."

"Too bad. Maybe another time," Penny smiled.

Their eyes met for a second and they exchanged a tender look. Leonard quickly looked away. Otherwise Penny might have seen something in his eyes. Something he couldn't reveal to Penny. Desire, Yearning, Love. He cleared his throat. "Umm...I have a doctor's appointment at the ENT physician. It's on the other side of the park, so I decided to walk. But I'm already late, I must fly." He smiled at her and waved his hand. "Have a nice day Penny."

"Thanks. You too," she murmured. She looked after him and her thoughts were in a turmoil. _No sarcastic comments? Why was he so nice? What about this dream? And what about these butterflies in my stomach that I feel, everytime I see him? What's going on?_

* * *

In the evening, Penny sat on her couch with a glass of wine on the table in front of her reading a magazine. From the other side of the hall she could hear Leonard and Sheldon fighting pretty loud about the setting of their apartment's thermostat. Apparently Leonard wanted to turn it up two degrees. But Sheldon didn't allow it because of a clause in a so-called roommate agreement. Penny shook her head and chuckled. "Roommate agreement?" A few moments later she heard a door slam shut and a further moment later there was a knock on her door.

"Who is it?" Penny asked.

"Leonard".

"Hang on a sec." Penny stood up from the couch, walked to the door and opened it.

"Hi Penny." Leonard greeted her.

"What brings you over here so late in the evening?"

"Can I sleep on your couch tonight?" Leonard inquired.

"Uh, well, you can try, but the people across the hall are being very noisy."

Leonard looked slightly embarrassed. "You heard that, huh?"

Penny nodded. "Apparently, the one fella tried to adjust the thermostat, then the other fella went bat-crap crazy."

"So you agree, he's nuts."

"Yep, he's a whackadoodle," Penny agreed.

"So? Can I sleep on your couch tonight?" Leonard asked again.

"Oh, sorry. Yes, of course. Come in." Penny stepped aside and let Leonard into her apartment. Penny closed to door and walked back to the couch, while Leonard still stood by the door. "Don't stand there like a pillar of salt", she smiled. "Come over here and have a seat." Leonard walked over to the couch and sat down. "Can I offer you a glass of wine?" Penny asked him.

"Yes, please." Leonard said. After the stressfull situation with Sheldon he needed something to soothe his nerves.

Penny went over to the kitchen area and took a wineglass out of a shelf. When she was back at the couch she put the glass in front of Leonard on the table. Penny sat down on the couch again, took the bottle of wine that was standing on the table and poured Leonard a glass of wine.

"Thanks. I really need this right now." He took the glass and lifted it for a toast. "To a peaceful night without my crazy roommate."

Penny laughed and took her glass from the table and clicked glasses with Leonard. "Hear! Hear!"

They both took a swig of wine and began talking about the events of the day.

"Hey, you wanna play a drinking game?" Penny asked cheerfully after a few minutes.

"Sure, why not? What's the game?"

"All right, it's called 'Never Have I Ever'. The rules are simple. Each of us says something we have never done before, but if you have done it, you take a sip of wine. And since we're grown-up's and friends don't be shy to say something personal or intimate."

Leonard chuckled. "Sounds interesting. I've never played that before."

Penny was surprised. "Really? Well, okay. I'll go first. All right, let's see. Never have I ever..."

Leonard smirked. "Are you trying to think of something you've never done before? This could take a while."

"Very funny." Penny pouted. "Okay, never have I ever... Yeah, you know what? You'll go first."

Leonard laughed. "I'm just kidding." He cupped his chin in his hand and started to think. "Okay...Hmm...Never have I ever drunk my own urine."

To Leonard's surprise and dismay Penny took a swig of wine. "Really? That's disgusting."

"Let me explain," Penny said. "In Girl Scouts, Tammie Dinisha said you could convert urine into drinking water with panty hose. Boy, was she wrong."

"How did it taste?" Leonard asked curiously, but still grossed out.

"Well, wine tastes better. That's for sure," Penny chuckled. "Okay, my turn. Never have I ever had an erotic dream about a teacher when I was in high school."

Leonard blushed and took a swig of wine.

"Leonard!" Penny grinned mischievously. "You really surprise me. Who was it? I bet it was your physics teacher," she teased him.

"Umm...math teacher. But let's not delve into that. Okay, let's see. Never have I ever had sex with someone whose name I didn't know." Leonard looked at Penny, who shook her head.

She opened her mouth aghast at Leonard's astonished facial expression when she didn't drink. "Hey, what kind of girl do you think I am? Someone who randomly grabs guys to do them?"

Leonard smiled mildly and made an apologetic gesture. "Sorry! Of course not! You're a good girl."

"That's right!" Penny giggled.

Suddenly Leonard became serious. He screwed up his courage and looked directly into Penny's eyes. "I mean it. And you're a beautiful girl. Inside and out. You are perfect."

Penny's jaw dropped open, but she couldn't say a word. She was literally speechless and looked at him in disbelief.

"You are the most beautiful girl in the world." Leonard said, staring deeply into Penny's eyes. "But as I said, you're beautiful in the inside too. You're kind, you're funny, you're warm-hearted, you're caring...well, you're just an amazing and wonderful human being."

Tears began to form in Penny's eyes. She was still at a loss for words, but somehow she managed to say something. "W...W...Why do you say these wonderful things to me? Right now, right here."

"Because they're true. And you deserve to know it. And it's not the wine speaking. I'm still sober." After a moment of silence Leonard continued. "And let me add, that I'm really sorry for all the mean things I said to you in the past. I didn't mean it."

"Oh my god," Penny whispered. She was utterly perplexed. A million thoughts raced through her head. And a million butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She was overwhelmed by all kinds of feelings. Strong feelings. Feelings for Leonard. _Please kiss me Leonard._

Neither of them knew what to say, neither of them understood what happened in this moment, so they just stayed silent and looked at each other. Penny still stunned with watery eyes because of the most wonderful words anyone ever said to her and Leonard enchanted by Penny's gorgeous green eyes, which sent a look at him that plumbed his very soul.

A single tear rolled down Penny's cheek. Again, Leonard got up the nerve to do something he thought he would never be able to do a few minutes before. He leaned over to Penny, brushed the tear away with his thumb and tenderly cupped her cheek with his hand. He closed his eyes and softly kissed her lips. At that very moment when their lips touched, electricity shot through their bodies, causing a feeling for both of them that was beyond description.

When they broke the kiss, they just stared at each other. And they both saw the same in the eyes of the other. Desire.

So it took only seconds, when their lips crashed. But this time it wasn't soft and tender kissing. Penny linked her hands together behind his neck, while Leonard wrapped his arms around Penny's waist and pulled her closer to him. Their kissing became more and more hot and passionate. At one point both of them had to gasp for air. "Oh Leonard", Penny panted. Leonard then began to kiss Penny's neck, which sent incredible pleasant shivers through her body. _Oh my god, it's just like in my dream_ , Penny thought. Leonard's lips returned to Penny's and they plunged their tongues into each others mouth. Their kissing full of passion and desire continued until the need for air forced them to break the kiss. Penny let out a deep moan. Both breathed laboredly and they looked at each other, with their foreheads touching and their noses only a few inches apart. Leonard now could see something else in Penny's eyes. It was arousal. And he felt the same.

"For the past few weeks I couldn't think of anyone else but you", Penny said, running her fingers through Leonard's hair. "I need you." She placed soft kisses on his lips and his cheek. Leonard reciprocated the kisses, which became more passionate again. He moaned into her mouth and broke the kiss. Again they looked deep into each others eyes. "Penny, I want you," Leonard gasped out.

In that second Penny made a decision. She smiled seductively and got up from the couch. Then she took Leonard's hand and pulled him into her bedroom.

Having reached there, they startet to kiss again in an utterly passionate way. Desire and Lust took over control of all their actions. Leonard and Penny's tongues literally intertwined and their hands were all over each other's bodies. Penny raised her arms to make it easier for Leonard to take off her orange tank top. Then he opened her red bra, that landed next to the tank top on the floor. The sight of Penny's now unveiled breasts caused Leonard's breathing to quicken. "You like what you see?" Penny giggled. "Uh-huh", Leonard nodded with a shy smile on his face. _God, he is so cute... and sexy._ Now Leonard took off his hoodie and T-shirt, while Penny kneeled before him to unbutton and unzip his trousers. She yanked off the trousers, so they were wrapped around his ankles. He stepped out of them and kicked them away. Next Leonard removed Penny's floral shorts. Restless hands then stripped off her panties and let them slide towards the floor.

Now that Penny was completely naked, Leonard hugged her to himself and began to caress her from head to toe. Leonard's tender but fervent treatment of Penny's body, caused her to moan with pleasure and send blissful sensations through her. When their lips met again, their kissing became more passionate and impetuous than before, if that was even possible.

Somehow Penny managed to remove Leonard's underpants and threw him onto her bed where he landed on his back. She followed immediately and sat down on his thighs. Penny embraced his erected, hard manhood with her hand and began to stroke it in an unbearable slow manner that caused Leonard to breathe heavily. While Penny continued to stroke him, Leonard sat up and licked her errect nipples. She threw her head back and moaned loudly.

They continued to explore their bodies by every trick in the book for the next twenty minutes. Finally Penny laid on her back and smiled at Leonard. "And now make love to me," she whispered. Leonard positioned himself, gave her a kiss and slowly entered her. She wrapped her legs around his back and he began to thrust. Leonard was so amazingly gentle and tender. It was love making in the truest sense of the word. Happy tears welled up in Penny's eyes. It was the most wonderful experience she ever had.

Leonard noticed the tears in Penny's eyes. "Penny, oh my god. Does it hurt?" he asked worriedly.

"No, Leonard, no! On the contrary," she assured him. "This is absolutely wonderful. What you see are happy tears."

After a while Penny felt her body tense. An infallible sign, that she was nearing the edge. The sensation of her climax that followed moments later overwhelmed her. "Oh my god Leonard. Yes. Yes." She had never felt something powerful like this before. No words could describe it.

Leonard now chased his own climax as he thrust faster. Penny encouraged him. "Yes, please come for me Leonard," she panted. Drops of sweat fell down from Leonard's forehead. A certain rigidity of his hands, which clutched her shoulders, and his erratic movements signaled he was close to the edge. When Leonard finally climaxed, it was so intense that it swept Penny along and caused another climax for her. As they experienced a mutual orgasm, both exclaimed the name of the other.

Leonard collapsed on Penny, breathing heavily before he withdrew from her and turned around onto his back. He pulled Penny close to him, who was happy and satisfied as never before. "Wow, you really are a genius", she said with a deep content sigh.

Leonard smiled contentedly. "This is definitely a night I'll never ever forget."

"Oh yes. Me neither," Penny said.

For a few minutes they just lay embraced in comfortable silence.

Penny then turned on her side to look at Leonard. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure".

"I know, this may come across as taking you by surprise, but I have to ask after this wonderful experience we shared." Penny paused for a few seconds, while Leonard looked at her intently. "Leonard, do you want to be my boyfriend?"

A huge smile spread across Leonard's face. "Yes, Penny. I want to be your boyfriend," he answered happily.

Penny squealed. Beaming with joy she placed a wet kiss on Leonard's lips. "Having a boyfriend again is a big deal for me. You know, I actually didn't want to get involved with a new man after all the failed relationships I had. I knew I had feelings for you for quite some time now, but I hid it behind this sarcastic banter."

"Same here. I also hid my true feelings behind this banter. Although I have to admit, that I sometimes enjoyed our banter. But I guess, I went over the top all to often," Leonard chuckled.

"Yep," Penny grinned. "But I overdid it too at times. Now that we know what we really feel for each other, we can relinquish the banter. Agreed?"

"Agreed!"

After lying again for a while in a tender embrace, both got up to go to the bathroom for some necessary clean-up's. They returned after a short while and went back into bed, huddled up to one another for some tender loving care.

Snuggled tightly at Leonard's side with her head resting at his neck, Penny draw patterns on his chest engrossed in thought. "By the way," Penny said in a soft voice. "The main reason I didn't want a new relationship was, that I was afraid that someone could break my heart again. But one night with you taught me, I don't have to be afraid anymore. I know you would never break my heart."

"That's true," Leonard assured her, stroking her arm. "I would never break your heart and I hope you'll never break mine."

Penny lifted her head and looked at Leonard. "No, I won't do that. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

Penny sat up and took Leonard's hand. "Because I love you," she said teary-eyed.

Leonard couldn't believe what he just heard. He sat up too and stared at her in disbelief with eyes wide opened. _This can't be true._ "Penny, are you sure?"

She nodded and looked straight into his eyes. "Yes, Leonard. I'm sure," she said almost in a whisper.

He lovingly looked at her and cupped her cheek with his palm. "I love you too. I loved you since the first time I met you."

Penny melted into happy tears. Her heart was filled with pure happiness and joy. She had never tought to fall in love with a man like Leonard. But she did, and she had fallen hard. There wasn't the merest hint of doubt. Even better. She was sure she had finally found the one.

Seeing Penny shedding happy tears, Leonard couldn't hold back his own happy tears from welling up in his eyes. He could hardly believe his luck. "But...but...why do you love me?" he asked with a tearful voice.

Penny ran her fingers through his hair. "You are such a great guy Leonard. I kinda knew right from the beginning, that your banter only was a disguise for the real you. The real Leonard, who is smart, funny, caring, selfless. You're just incredible. Oh, and you're cute. And most important. You're mine."

"Yes, I'm yours", he nodded. "You can't imagine how incredibly happy you made me."

Penny and Leonard totally forgot time. For these two lovers nothing else but them existed anymore. Meanwhile, the rising sun sent the first rays of light through one of the windows of Penny's bedroom and bathed it in wonderful shades of red and purple. Leonard and Penny laid in each other's arms, contented and snug beneath the blankets.

A bright future lay before them.

THE END

 **That's it. My first published fan fiction. I hope the ending is not too corny. The last line also could have been "And t** **hey lived happily ever after." LOL. But I wanted it this way. ;-)**

 **Thanks for reading and reviewing.  
**


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